📖LearnModule 11 · Lesson 8 of 30Proficient User · CEFR C1, first halfUnit 2 · Le subjonctif, mastered
Les subjonctifs irréguliers
Module 11 of the free French course (CEFR C1, first half), lesson 8 of 30: . On this page: 7 words with their genders and respellings, the rule, a watch-out line, the conjugation table and the audio — the study notes behind the workbook's lesson 8.
The words
French
English
Say it
que j'aille
that I go
kuh ZHAHY
que je fasse
that I do
kuh zhuh FAHS
que je puisse
that I can
kuh zhuh PWEES
que je sache
that I know
kuh zhuh SAHSH
irrégulier
irregular
ee-ray-gew-LYAY
par cœur
by heart
pahr KUHR
la racine
the stem, the root
lah rah-SEEN
Respellings follow the course’s say-it key; the stressed syllable is in capitals. Print this lesson’s flashcards (PDF) — the words on the front, the English and respelling on the back.
Hear the words
Each word is read twice — say it back in the gap. Computer-generated voice; credits on the course page.
La règle · The rule
Six carry their own stems and they are the six you will use most: aller gives aille, faire gives fasse, pouvoir gives puisse, savoir gives sache, être gives sois, avoir gives aie.
Et aussi · And also
Say them until they arrive without thinking: il faut que j'aille, que je fasse, que je puisse, que je sache.
Attention · Watch out
que j'aille, que je fasse, que je puisse, que je sache are four stems learned as words. que je vais or que je peux after il faut is an error a French reader notices at once.
aller, subjonctif — the table
je aille · tu ailles · il/elle aille · nous allions · vous alliez · ils/elles aillent
faire, subjonctif — the table
je fasse · tu fasses · il/elle fasse · nous fassions · vous fassiez · ils/elles fassent
pouvoir, subjonctif — the table
je puisse · tu puisses · il/elle puisse · nous puissions · vous puissiez · ils/elles puissent
savoir, subjonctif — the table
je sache · tu saches · il/elle sache · nous sachions · vous sachiez · ils/elles sachent
Do it now — on paper
Say all 7 words aloud twice from the respelling, then once from the French spelling alone — begin with que j'aille.
Copy every word with its accents on paper; then cover the English column and write each meaning back from the French.
Write out aller, subjonctif and faire, subjonctif and pouvoir, subjonctif and savoir, subjonctif in full from memory, every person, and check each form against the table above.
This free course is the reading half. The writing half — write-in lessons, daily practice pages with built-in review, self-checks and a full answer key — is the companion workbook series, The French Ladder: one workbook per module, fifteen in all, released band by band with the Basic band (Modules 1–5) first.
Keep these words
Turn this lesson’s words into flashcards, then space your reviews — the two habits the research behind our study guides backs hardest.